4f4c4942-4343-5764-6473-313134393432 English NRW_DS109834 Natural Resources Wales (NRW) Maes-y-Ffynnon, Penrhosgarnedd, Bangor, Gwynedd, LL57 2DW, Wales enquiries@naturalresourceswales.gov.uk http://naturalresources.wales/?lang=en 2026-10-20T10:33:39.89Z NRW 1.0 wel utf8 British National Grid (EPSG::27700) Intertidal Monitoring of Piddock Beds in Carmarthen Bay and Estuaries Special Area of Conservation (SAC) 2009 Intertidal Monitoring of Piddock Beds in Carmarthen Bay and Estuaries Special Area of Conservation (SAC) 2009 Gwaith Monitro Rhynglanwol ar Welau Pidogau yn ACA Bae Caerfyrddin ac Aberoedd 2009 2009 CCW / ASML Carmarthen Bay SAC intertidal piddock bed monitoring (MRCCW16300000022) 2012-06-30 NRW_DS114942 http://naturalresources.wales/ The Habitats Directive establishes that the management of Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) should aim to achieve the favourable conservation status of habitat and species features listed within its Annex I and Annex II. This data was captured to support a number of reporting requirements. These were namely reporting on conservation status of the piddock feature; mapping the boundary of the clay and peat exposures; to record the density of the piddock holes; and evaluate the best sampling methods. Carmarthen Bay SAC was designated for five Annex I intertidal habitat features: Estuaries; Mudflats and sandflats not covered by seawater at low tide; Large shallow inlets and bays; Salicornia and other annuals colonising mud and sand; Atlantic salt meadows (Glauco- Puccinellietalia maritimae). Specific areas of interest include the peat and clay beds burrowed by piddocks and the monitoring aimed to map the boundary of the clay/peat exposures, record the density of the piddock holes and evaluate the best sampling methods. The Habitats Directive establishes that the management of Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) should aim to achieve the favourable conservation status of habitat and species features listed within its Annex I and Annex II. This data was captured to support a number of reporting requirements. These were namely reporting on conservation status of the piddock feature; mapping the boundary of the clay and peat exposures; to record the density of the piddock holes; and evaluate the best sampling methods. Carmarthen Bay SAC was designated for five Annex I intertidal habitat features: Estuaries; Mudflats and sandflats not covered by seawater at low tide; Large shallow inlets and bays; Salicornia and other annuals colonising mud and sand; Atlantic salt meadows (Glauco- Puccinellietalia maritimae). Specific areas of interest include the peat and clay beds burrowed by piddocks and the monitoring aimed to map the boundary of the clay/peat exposures, record the density of the piddock holes and evaluate the best sampling methods. Natural Resources Wales (NRW) Maes-y-Ffynnon, Penrhosgarnedd, Bangor, Gwynedd, LL57 2DW, Wales enquiries@naturalresourceswales.gov.uk http://naturalresources.wales/?lang=en Natural Resources Wales (NRW) Maes-y-Ffynnon, Penrhosgarnedd, Bangor, Gwynedd, LL57 2DW, Wales enquiries@naturalresourceswales.gov.uk http://naturalresources.wales/?lang=en Countryside Council for Wales (CCW). Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems Group Maes y Ffynnon, Penrhosgarnedd, Bangor, Gwynedd, LL57 2DW, Wales enquiries@ccw.gov.uk http://www.ccw.gov.uk Aquatic Survey and Monitoring Ltd (ASML) Whitfield Brow, Bollihope, Frosterley, Weardale, Co. Durham, DL13 2SZ, England tom@aquatic-environments.co.uk http://www.marineseen.com/aquatic_survey_and_monitoring.htm Natural Resources Wales (NRW) Maes-y-Ffynnon, Penrhosgarnedd, Bangor, Gwynedd, LL57 2DW, Wales enquiries@naturalresourceswales.gov.uk http://naturalresources.wales/?lang=en Species distribution GEMET - INSPIRE themes, version 1.0 2008-06-01 geonetwork.thesaurus.external.theme.httpinspireeceuropaeutheme-theme Marine Recorder Carmarthen Bay and Estuaries SAC Specialised biotope Piddocks NRW Thesaurus 2026-10-19 geonetwork.thesaurus.local.theme.converted_nrw-keywords Habitat extent Zoobenthos taxonomy-related counts SeaDataNet Parameter Discovery Vocabulary 2024-06-19 geonetwork.thesaurus.external.theme.rdf+xml There are no access restrictions to this data. NRW may release, publish or disseminate it freely. no limitations © CNC/NRW Data may be re-used under the terms of the Open Government Licence providing it is done so, acknowledging both the source and NRW's copyright. It is the recipient's responsibility to ensure the data is fit for the intended purpose. Contains Natural Resources Wales information © Natural Resources Wales and Database Right. All rights Reserved. Open Government Licence English biota SeaVoX Vertical Co-ordinate Coverages 2021-01-06 benthic boundary layer SIR GAERFYRDDIN - CARMARTHENSHIRE -4.61313101 -4.59765121 51.73297817 51.73877622 2009-09-20 2009-09-21 Intertidal SAC monitoring Carmarthen Bay SAC September 2009 Database Marine Recorder Online - Version 2.09.02 Marine Recorder Commission Regulation (EU) No 1089/2010 of 23 November 2010 implementing Directive 2007/2/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards interoperability of spatial data sets and services 2010-12-08 This dataset has not been assessed for conformance to the referenced INSPIRE regulation. false The bed was divided into three blocks (western, eastern, central) and to sample randomly thrown quadrats (0.25 m2) within each block. In the event, it was found that the piddock distribution was clumped along the edges of channels and thus the randomly thrown quadrats were missing most of the piddocks. Because of this, part of the way through the exercise the method was adapted to targeting areas of piddock holes rather than sampling the whole clay exposure. In addition to the quadrat work, a number of timed counts of piddock holes were also carried out, with the intention of making a comparison between the two approaches to help with planning future monitoring work. Piddock beds were first mapped at Marros Sands near Pendine and Whiteford Point on the north Gower coast during Phase 1 surveys carried out by CCW in 2000.The piddock beds are vulnerable to shifting beach sand, a natural phenomenon. No beds were found at Whiteford Point in 2009, although monitored previously in 2004. Data quality and confidence is considered high as all surveys were completed by professional and experienced marine field surveyors. Piddock beds were first mapped at Marros Sands near Pendine and Whiteford Point on the north Gower coast during Phase 1 surveys carried out by CCW in 2000. The bed was divided into three blocks (western, eastern, central) and to sample randomly thrown quadrats (0.25 m2) within each block. In the event, it was found that the piddock distribution was clumped along the edges of channels and thus the randomly thrown quadrats were missing most of the piddocks. Because of this, part of the way through the exercise the method was adapted to targeting areas of piddock holes rather than sampling the whole clay exposure. In addition to the quadrat work, a number of timed counts of piddock holes were also carried out, with the intention of making a comparison between the two approaches to help with planning future monitoring work. Piddock beds were first mapped at Marros Sands near Pendine and Whiteford Point on the north Gower coast during Phase 1 surveys carried out by CCW in 2000.The piddock beds are vulnerable to shifting beach sand, a natural phenomenon. No beds were found at Whiteford Point in 2009, although monitored previously in 2004. Data quality and confidence is considered high as all surveys were completed by professional and experienced marine field surveyors. Piddock beds were first mapped at Marros Sands near Pendine and Whiteford Point on the north Gower coast during Phase 1 surveys carried out by CCW in 2000.